Natalie Hilterman – Ngāti Whakaue, Ngāti Kahungunu, Whakatōhea
Atawhai Creative is a boutique communications and marketing agency established in 2018. Their mission is to amplify Māori and indigenous voices, ensuring pūrākau, perspectives, and contributions are shared and celebrated.
Their work is centered on empowering indigenous communities to express their unique pūrākau and preserve cultural heritage through innovative and culturally grounded approaches.
Specialising in strategic communications, content creation, and creative storytelling, they work with a variety of organisations, businesses, and whānau to craft content that resonates with a variety of audiences.
Led by owner Natalie, her and her team have worked in various industries both nationally and internationally to bring a breadth of knowledge, expertise and most importantly aroha, to the mahi they support.
Natalie explains, “Our base in the Bay of Plenty has been integral to our success, as it allows us to draw from the rich culture and community here. This connection to our whānau, the whenua and people inspires our kaupapa, keeps us grounded, and fosters strong relationships with local rōpū hapori.”
“As Māori, our stories are our taonga — they hold the weight of our history, our values, and our moemoeā, our dreams for the future. We are committed to ensuring these stories are told with mana. Every project we take on reflects our belief in the transformative power of storytelling to uplift, connect, and strengthen our communities.”
“Often, our clients know they want to engage with their stakeholders but aren’t sure how. This is where we bring real value. We assess the outcomes they’re seeking and provide tailored solutions.”
Whether it’s creating communications or engagement strategies, drafting pānui or online content to update whānau and key stakeholders, crafting media releases for wider engagement, designing logos or graphical elements to enhance their narrative, or producing video and audio content for visual storytelling — the team at Atawhai Creative aim to meet each customers need with the right support.
Natalie says, “Every step of the process is grounded in Te Ao Māori frameworks, ensuring our approach is tika and pono. Our culture is so rich and layered, and everything we create weaves these beautiful pūrākau into our mahi, giving every project deeper meaning”.
Finally Natalie says “Atawhai Creative exists not just to offer a service, but to build relationships, strengthen our culture, be kaitiaki of taonga tuku iho, and empower Māori and indigenous communities through the art of creative storytelling”.
For more information, you can check out their website or find them on Facebook and Instagram.
